"Either he is a noble captain or a very confident one. Or, depending on the outcome on Sunday, he may well go down as simply foolhardy."

Lawrence Donegan reviews the recent course setup shenanigans by Ryder Cup Captains and wonders what Monty is thinking by not doing this best to rig the course to gain a European advantage.

How else can we paint the European captain's bizarre decision not to make the most of home advantage, setting up the course in a way that would suit his players best and make life as uncomfortable as possible for the big-hitting USA team. After all, it is not against the rules. Sam Torrance did it at The Belfry in 2002, Ian Woosnam at the K Club in 2006 and, as he explains in a recently published book, so did Paul Azinger two years ago, when the USA won the Cup in Kentucky.

Not Montgomerie, who has decided to take the high road from Valhalla. "There is no reason at all," he said when asked why not. "I haven't played around with the course at all. It is set up in a very fair manner. I think I am allowing the best team to win."

Either he is a noble captain or a very confident one. Or, depending on the outcome on Sunday, he may well go down as simply foolhardy.